ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. swing — music
  3. season — of the year
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. court — of law
  12. lean — thin
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. game — a match
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. content — the amount
  17. season — in sport
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. court — of a king
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. court — for sport
  23. content — happy
  24. bowl — to roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com